ADs deflower male cucumbers for the Greater Good. All phallic aubergines welcome .

[BogRollBOGOF]

Because bitter male cucumbers don't bring joy, but phallic aubergines can raise an irreverent smile.

AD chat continues about life, the universe and everything. We know the answer is 42 but what is the question?
6x7?
How many roads must a man walk down?
How many unsadly reincarnations have PHE put into the database?

I love the sound of your aunt, Livin

Welcome back, your holiday sounds fab. Sorry to be greeting you with rain but I guess you probably aren't very surprised

I'm off to London for a couple of days next week, on the train. It will be the first time I've left my city since March and I have absolutely no idea how I'm going to feel about it.
I'm actually a bit concerned that it will make me sad if it is still a long way from normal and that isn't the purpose of the trip at all!
What's it like in Kings Cross, Bloomsbury, Islington, Camden etc? Anyone know?

@Welcometothelifeboatparty

There's a really annoying story on bbc news now about how people are happy with working from home and local lockdowns, and how parents think home schooling would be fine long term. Conducted by IPSOS MORI for kings college London. I'd like to know how they worded those questions

The awful thing is, those with the appropriate material means WILL be living their best lives - with a “servant class” underneath them. You know, the poor people who deliver parcels, make posh ready meals on a factory line and make sure your broadband is still up.

There’s this huge gulf between them and us widening throughout this and yet those pushing themselves “up” get to pay themselves in the back for the greater good. I’m sorry, I’m not articulating this very well. But there’s something in the “my husband works very hard for his £££” has moved to the “we’re doing this to protect YOU”. You can argue the former because everyone knows HCA do earn their NMW, but it’s harder to argue PRO granny-killing.

You don’t get many veggie willies in Tesco. I’ve got a crop of butternut squash - giant willies will be in abundance!

M&S hand stuff is so strong it made my car stink. I too had thought whacking my palm on the pump would likely be the most contact I’ve had throughout this entire period.

I bust my face last night. I have trigeminal neuralgia and bit down on a bloody mustard seed which sent waves of electricity through my face for hours. Typically was the last mouthful of a lovely meal... you kind of feel the calories have been wasted in such a scenario. Life’s too short to live on lukewarm smoothies.

We're still in bloody Covid World, aren't we?

Weather forecast is thunder & heavy showers all afternoon, so going out looks dodgy.

DD fed up last night - we're in for a rough day then.

Looks like the 3 of us at home who work can't all get the same days off work at the end of the month (DD's rota is getting done very last minute), & then DS is back at school. So can't arrange anything, & places to stay for just one night so we get a break are now booked up.

Is there an emoji for banging your head against a brick wall or riding a bike through treacle?

IT'S JUST NOT FAIR

@Welcometothelifeboatparty

There's a really annoying story on bbc news now about how people are happy with working from home and local lockdowns, and how parents think home schooling would be fine long term. Conducted by IPSOS MORI for kings college London. I'd like to know how they worded those questions

It doesn't specify parents find home schooling acceptable, just those surveyed (although the article is carefully put together by talking about parents just before this so you have parents in mind when you read it). Makes me wonder what %of people they surveyed actually have kids in school.

@TheOrchidKiller Microsoft teams actually has that emoji . It is used quite frequently in our work team...

Solidarity to @HelenaDove & @InsaneInTheViralMembrane with your earache & TN pain. I get pain in those areas & it's no joke. So far no problems with masks but I had problems with scarves on my face or wearing glasses some years back. No suggestions, I'm afraid, just sympathy.

@LivinLaVidaLoki the description of your holiday sounds wonderful!

@Ghostlyglow will be interested to hear how your London trip goes, & the train journey. Have been down there for a couple of days the past few summers & it's been so nice. Have missed it this year. Was due to go end of March & then Boris said stay at home.

Ghostlyglow
@TheOrchidKiller Microsoft teams actually has that emoji grin. It is used quite frequently in our work team...

Yippee. That's something to look forwards to tomorrow, then. I hate Microsoft Teams.

The awful thing is, those with the appropriate material means WILL be living their best lives - with a “servant class” underneath them. You know, the poor people who deliver parcels, make posh ready meals on a factory line and make sure your broadband is still up.

This is very true. It's one of the things that makes me uncomfortable with the (few) teachers who trot out the "are you working in a crowded room in close contact with 150+ people a day" line. Because actually, lots of people in the 'servant class' have got fucking shit working conditions, but they haven't had the luxury of working from home and don't have a huge union backing them up. They've just had to get on with it. Like the people in the food production industry - the ones actually bloody well getting Covid, ffs. But hey, you can order your m&s pre-packed sandwich platter to be delivered by ocado for your socially distanced garden party, so you're in the right, and those plebs in the pub are letting the rest of us down.

Went to the beach yesterday, was quiet in the damp and pretty nice! I was heartened by the family of 30 divided between the beach and beach hut having a birthday party!

I went into a motorway service station and forgot my face mask, nobody said anything.

The dementors are shrieking about people daring to HUG others. I had some nice family hugs yesterday!

I haven't had hugs yet. Except my friend a couple of weeks ago who just gave me a bear hug as soon as he saw me. I want more hugs!

We go to London alot @TheOrchidKiller (or we did...)
I asked for some advice on another thread and there are people saying you have to book to go anywhere, which sounds pretty miserable. We're just going to wing it, though! - not booking to go the the pub FFS!

@SirSamuelVimesBlackboardMonito
Like the people in the food production industry - the ones actually bloody well getting Covid, ffs. But hey, you can order your m&s pre-packed sandwich platter to be delivered by ocado for your socially distanced garden party, so you're in the right, and those plebs in the pub are letting the rest of us down.

^ yes to this. It's always the "plebs" who get it in the neck. It's the, "I pay your wages" mentality.

@Ghostlyglow I'm weighing up the benefits of the experience over the possibilty of track & trace catching up with me. It has to be worth the possible self-isolation.

Last summer we booked timed tickets for some art galleries. I'm usually spur of the moment but booking was better than I thought, & the time slots were generous. I think it would work for that sort of thing. It's all the planning though.

Morning all. Welcome back @LivinLaVidaLoki, so glad you've had a wonderful time.

The group i was out with last night (12 of us, 6 households 😱) were AD's in the extreme. Whole beer garden was rocking. Expect to see me named and shamed in MSM any day now.

I've been out so much over the last few weeks that you could be forgiven for thinking the paranoia is only media hype. Except the paranoid are still at home. More evidence of the polarisation this virus wreaks.

Morning all and glad you had a lovely time @LivinLaVidaLoki.

💐to the ADs with sore faces, sounds horrid.

Totally agreeing about the social divide being created. I don’t get that attitude either. I am so happy DS is back at school, but for his sake. A bit of normality for him after all this.

Morning all. I'm so fed up and just bloody sad today. Sick of the uncertainty, can't make any plans. Don't know whether wedding will go ahead next year, don't know whether we will be able to go on holiday. Will local lockdowns still be a thing? Will quarantine still exist?

So fucking fed up. Just said to dp id rather be dead than still be living like this next year. He was all like oh don't be silly you wouldn't, but I genuinely think I would.

If we could both work from home I'd book the sodding holiday and go tomorrow but he can't can't afford two weeks off either really.

I want to cancel the wedding because I can't bare the maybe, maybe not that surrounds it but he doesn't.

Oh interesting @Littlebelina I missed that. You're right

So we’ll put @SirSamuelVimesBlackboardMonito - I’ve become quite cross with the malice levied at the plebs not socially distancing at the few bars - but the naice families flying to their second homes on the med are immune (both from covid AND criticism).

My dad pointed out the other day that his illicit trips to Aberdeen with my kids to visit pensioners appear to have resulted in zero deaths.

Saw a video on fb last night of a friend who currently has covid. They’d put their ventilator to one side briefly to gallop their big Irish horse over their land.

@ibake I fear you’re too old for MSM to become involved. If perhaps it were your kids flouting...

@TrustTheGeneGenie 💐 It does all seem so relentless sometimes and I think we’ve all had these bleak days. Snuggle up, don’t think, eat something nice and regroup.

My mum was a teacher - a very motivated and good one by all accounts. She’d have buried herself under the patio if she’d had to sahm and teach us herself.

Welcome back loki - doesn’t surprise me about the Dutch and Germans at all. I have zero idea why just so MANY Brits believe they take international gold for poorly behaved.

Sorry to all those struggling. The inability to do anything spontaneous, or to plan big life events is so very, very depressing. It just grinds you down, and there's no end in sight.

My aged aunt died in April. So there's been no funeral and her family want a celebration of life which they have pencilled in for October. No idea if it can happen, in what form, or even if folks would come. And if they did, whether they'd be a pain in the arse and make it all about themselves. One cousin, for example, will go out if she has to, but is 'terrified'. She has form for being a drama queen and, as the celebration isn't even for her mum, just her aunt, she will be very hard to put up with if she starts off on one.

@InsaneInTheViralMembrane oh there were plenty of yoof in the bar too - so that's fine, we'll just blame them! (Trying to decide if I'm cross that you've just called me old )

DH and I were talking about our horribly negative British culture. He doesn't think it's across the board, he thinks the origins are firmly entrenched in middle class guilt.

@LivinLaVidaLoki sounds absolute heaven! Shame the weather is awful here for your return

We booked to come to soft play and I thought I would see how it was, there's a reason you dont wear masks normally here! It's sodding ridiculous and it's pretty much a 100% of people doing it although everybody running around after kids has it falling down. I don't think I'll be coming back even though we have a membership! DD had a freak out when we first went in with the masks and all the grown ups wearing them and I just saw a look of terror in her eyes which made me so upset. Then, looking back at the still face experiment I tried to smile at baby with a mask on but she just couldn't work out a response to me. I just want people to bloody think about Children's responses and their emotional wellbeing with the mask thing,something so huge surely is going to register even more on children who are too young to understand what's going on!

@Ibake Sun 16-Aug-20 10:32:37

DH and I were talking about our horribly negative British culture. He doesn't think it's across the board, he thinks the origins are firmly entrenched in middle class guilt.

But the people moaning that 'British people are the worst' never seem to include themselves in it. It's always everyone else.

'Am I the only one who is still ...) they whine. So they can all get together in their collective blame fest.